Imagine you have a balloon that is full of air. If you let the air out, the balloon gets smaller and smaller until it’s flat. That’s like being negative—something is missing or taken away. Negative is like having less of something or even nothing at all.
Think about a thermometer. When it’s really cold, the numbers go below zero. Those numbers are negative. It’s like saying it’s colder than freezing! Negative numbers tell us we’re below a starting point, like going under a line.
Picture a bank account. If you have money, it’s positive. But if you owe money, that’s negative. It’s like having less than zero dollars. Being negative means you need to add more to get back to zero.
Imagine a battery. When it’s full, it makes things work like toys or flashlights. But when it’s empty, it’s negative—it can’t make things work until it’s charged again. Negative can mean there’s not enough power to do something.